Flashpoint
by JennaGreenleaf
Summary: The Justice League is more of a family than anything else. And the family that kicks criminal butt together stays together, especially when one of their own goes missing. But how does a mentor protect his protege and his family when not even the Batman can find them?
1. Prologue

Prologue

He'd never felt pain like this before. _Everything hurt_. He could barely move his legs, and his arms had stopped working properly a long time ago. He knew even if he did get out of this, he couldn't run, couldn't fight.

He'd run himself ragged. What had he been doing? He couldn't remember. It was getting too hard to think. He'd never before felt so _empty_.

His last calorie of food, well, he'd burnt that at least 2 days ago. He'd lost his already-small fat layer twelve hours ago. He'd passed out around then, as his rapid metabolism had started in on atrophying his muscles and eating his stomach wall.

Where was everyone? Surly they'd be looking for him by now. How could it be taking them so long?

_Uncle Barry…Robin…Kaldur…Artemis…M'gann…Supey…Roy…Zatanna… Where are you?_


	2. Contact

Chapter 1 - Contact

Robin slammed a gloved hand down on his keyboard. Wally, Kid Flash, had been missing for nearly three days, and _he couldn't find him anywhere_.

The sound drew the eyes of his team. Miss Martian, Megan, actually jumped. Superboy, Conner, barely nodded. Artemis and Aqualad (Kaldur) looked up. Zatanna stood and went to Robin, catching his hand in her own.

"I can't find him!" the thirteen-year-old cried, "He's not anywhere! How am I supposed to be Robin—protégé to the greatest detective in the world—if I can't even find my best friend?"

Kaldur spoke before Zatanna could, in his deep, calming voice, "Robin, you've been awake for nearly forty-eight hours. I wouldn't be surprised if you couldn't even see the screen in front of you. Try to get some rest. I do not want to have to worry about you as well when we go into the field."

It was a surprise to everyone when Robin relented. He turned away from the computer screen and collapsed onto the couch, his head resting scant inches from Artemis' green-clad leg.

Artemis grinned slightly, "So the Boy Wonder does have a limit," For as soon as his head had hit the couch, Robin was fast asleep.

"What assets do we have?" Zatanna asked, "I know Batman's doing exactly what Robin was just doing, but we could run grid searches in the major cities. I could try the locater spell again."

"No good," said Kaldur, "We only have a few people who can search like that. It would take us days to cover a single city, and I don't think Kid Flash has that kind of time. And the locater spell is not going to work, Zatanna. Even Doctor Fate tried it." Zatanna paled at the mention of Doctor Fate, who had possessed her father's body.

_**Recognizing Flash 04**_

The computer's simulated voice came over the loudspeaker. The teens (minus Robin) sprinted towards the Zeta tubes. Flash was Wally's mentor. If anyone could help them, it was him.

Flash himself didn't look that much better than Robin. His costume was torn, and he wasn't wearing a mask.

"Flash!" M'gann yelled.

"Where is Robin?" he said shortly.

"Passed out on the couch," Superboy said, "Don't wake him up." Superboy was fiercely protective of his friends.

"I won't," said the Flash, "Batman has had no luck in locating Wally. Martian Manhunter is casting his mind out as far as his powers allow, but there is a very high chance he will miss Wally—"

"Why would he miss Wally? Uncle J'onn knows Wally's mind!"

The Flash turned to her, "Because Wally will be pretty much catatonic by now, and his brain function will be next to nothing. He's been gone three days."

The team looked at Flash questioningly.

Flash sighed, "What's the betting that his captors have fed him in the past three days? It's a well-known fact that the only way to get Wally to shut up is to starve him to the point where his body simply can't function anymore."

Many of the team stifled gasps.

"A well-known fact?" asked Artemis, "You mean, you've _tested _it?"

"NO!" Flash yelped, his eyes flashing, "But people have tested it on me. Artemis, I know what I'm talking about."

Nobody wanted to ask how he knew. That would have been Wally's job, had he been with them.

M'gann threw up her hands, "I can't take this anymore! There must be something we can do!"

Flash shook his head, "I can't think of anything that would be useful."

Kaldur held up a hand, "Let's go over the situation, one last time."

"Kaldur!" Artemis groaned, "We've been over this so many times! First with Batman, then Black Canary, and not to mention all the times we've gone over it together."

"One more time, Artemis," Kaldur's voice had a pleading edge to it, "One more time. For Wally's Mother and Aunt."

Artemis sighed, "So, Wally was at school. His chemistry lab blew up when his idiot of a teacher mixed two chemicals that really shouldn't be mixed. They were out in the yard, surrounded by police, and reporters, and no one managed to get a decent view of the creep that snatched Wally."

"Iris was even there," Flash said, "One moment, Wally was beside her, and the next he was gone."

"But how can we take anything from that?" Artemis questioned, "Wally does that all the time. He's even guiltier of it than Robin is. Iris probably didn't think anything of it."

"No, she didn't. She figured he'd gone to find some food or something," Flash said, "So Wally was most likely abducted from school. However, we don't know that until he misses dinner at the Bat's place, which he never does—"

"It's his excuse to eat somebody else out of house and home," Artemis muttered.

"—And Robin calls you guys to see if you'd seen him, and Batman calls me, and Mary at home, and Rudy at work. At the time, Wally had been missing for nearly three hours."

Kaldur continued to talk when it became clear that Flash couldn't continue, "By hour six, we've scoured Mount Justice all the way from Robin's nest on the top level to the workout room in the subbasement. Throughout this time, Robin's been hacking all the feeds he can and tracking everything anyone could think of, and Zatanna and Doctor Fate are trying locater spells that aren't working."

_**Recognizing Batman 02**_

The Dark Knight himself swept into the room.

"And then, two days later, the Flash shows up, and then we are visited by Batman," Artemis said dryly.

Batman made immediately for the Cave's supercomputer. He scanned the team and seemed to note that Robin wasn't with them, "Martian Manhunter was unable to find any sign of Kid Flash in his mental scan," the team groaned collectively and M'gann summoned a chair for Flash as he sat down heavily, "But Green Arrow got lucky. He was searching Gotham and found Kid Flash's tracker dot. It was broken, but it was his. Nearby was a pair of running shoes that showed signs of heavy wear, the kind associated with running just below the speed of sound."

Flash's head shot up, "Can we glean anything from them?"

"Only that Kid Flash was never in Gotham, and that is probably the best news we've learned since he went missing."

"How do we know that?"

"Because Green Arrow was deep in the Joker's territory, and none of the Joker's calling cards were around. The Joker likes attention. He didn't take Wally, and no other criminal would ever invade the Joker's territory."

"Then how did Wally's shoes get there? Are you saying it was Joker?"

Batman turned to M'gann, "No. There are signs that someone left the scene in a hurry. Kid Flash's belongings were dropped off, and then the kidnappers ran," he turned away, "Flash, you are needed at the Watchtower. Come with me."

Flash began to protest, but the 'bat-glare' silenced him. He meekly followed Batman out of the Cave.

"Ok, so not Gotham," Artemis turned to the team, "And not Central, either, Flash already searched there."

A sudden, shrill ringing noise drew all of their attention. The team raced back into the living commons just in time to see Robin bolt upright. He stumbled a bit while attempting to get off the couch, and eventually settled for just rolling over and rubbing furiously at his eyes with the heel of his palms.

"What was that?" Kaldur asked.

Robin's voice was coarse when he first tried to speak, then he cleared his throat, "I tagged the e-mail accounts of the human identities of most of the Justice League—Batman, Superman, Green Arrow, Flash, Wonder Woman, etcetera. That was an alert that the tag was set off."

"Whose tag was it, Robin?" Artemis asked.

Robin consulted his wrist computer, "Flash. There's an email from an unknown source in Barry Allen's mailbox," Robin sighed, "In kidnappings, emails are bad," he explained to M'gann's shocked expression. He balked, "This one's got a video file attached to it." Robin was normally pale. But now, he was whiter than a sheet, so colourless he was almost grey.

"Robin," Kaldur warned, "Breathe." Robin drew a shuddering breath and seemed to regain his composure.

"I'll pull up the video file. Give me two seconds, Batman's trying to block me, but I—we have to see it. There's no other choice." Exactly forty-five seconds later, a hologram screen popped up.

_**Play video?**_ The computerized voice asked.

"Authorization Robin B02," Robin said.

_**Access denied.**_

"No!" Robin cried, "Authorization Robin B02. Override!"

_**Access denied.**_

__"Not this time, Batman. This time, my best friend's life is on the line. Override. Authorization Robin B02."

_**Access denied.**_

He looked around at his team, "I'm swearing you guys to secrecy, right here, right now. Anyone who breaths a word of this to anyone will definitely _not_ be feeling the aster."

"We understand, Robin," surprisingly, it was Artemis who spoke.

Robin nodded and turned back to the holographic screen, "Override Robin B02. Override C01 Richard Grayson, password Mary. Override two C01 Richard Grayson, password Richard. Access manual override, password little bird."

_**Access granted.**_

"I knew it," Artemis breathed, "You're Richard Grayson. You're Dick Grayson, the freshman who's been stalking me since I started school."

"I'd try denying it, but there is no point whatsoever. Now, Artemis, shut up." Robin hit the play button.

_"Hello, Barry Allen. Or should I call you the Flash? I don't really think it matters. I'm sure you want to know where your Baby Flash is, huh? I think I'll ease you mind a bit. Smile for the camera, Wallace West."_

The camera panned to focus on the first sight of Wally any of them had seen in three days.

Their eyes were first draw to his face. His bruised, battered, and bloody face. There was a deep cut on his forehead, and his lip was split. His nose was definitely broken. Wally's shirt had been torn off, and his normally toned torso was emaciated—there was no other word for it. He looked as if he'd been starved for months (and by his internal clock, he had been). Wally was tied to a chair with his hands behind his back. His head dipped forward onto his chest—he was unconscious, and barely breathing.

The camera panned back into the dark corner it had been pointing at first.

_"Not a pretty sight, is he, Mr. Allen? You've been like that before, I know. It's not fun, is it? Now you're going to ask me for my demands. Well, here's what I want. Barry Allen doesn't have access to that much money, but the Flash does. I want ten million of it. You come in, what do you hero types call it? Civvies, and you come alone. Otherwise not only does your little sidekick get it, but I'll blow your cover as well. For every three hours you delay, I'll reveal someone's secret identity. Let's see, Bruce Wayne is much different under that cowl. Does the little Robin still like to mutilate the English language? I hear Richard Grayson likes that as well. Him and his best friend, Barbara Gordon. I'm surprised he can smile, after watching his parents plummet to their deaths when he was only nine years old. Tell me, has Clark Kent accepted his son yet? Or has Conner still got some daddy issues? Has Oliver Queen shaved that ridiculous goatee yet? And how is his latest protégé, little miss daughter of Sportsmaster and Huntress? Have you heard from your sister Jade lately, Artemis Lian Crock? I hear she's all set to marry the clone, Roy Harper. Disappearing just like the Cheshire cat, huh? Anyway, enough secrets. Say goodbye to Wallace for the time being."_

The video feed cut to black.


	3. Impact

Chapter 2 - Impact

"What was that?" Artemis asked, _"How does that idiot know so much about us?"_

"That's what you took from that, Artemis? Did you even see Kid Flash?" Conner yelled.

"Of course I did! But I've been around Robin long enough to know that right now, the way to Wally is through the kidnapper. So how did this guy get to know so much about us? It's hard to believe someone outside the League could know so much about us."

"What are you saying?" Robin snapped, "That someone in the League is a traitor? Artemis, I grew up with these people. I'm a brilliant judge of character, and not one of them ever threw up a red flag, not once."

"Neither did Red Arrow," Artemis said, "And look how that turned out. Now we have no idea where the not-cloned Roy is, and the cloned one is going to marry my sister!"

"How are we supposed to investigate the entire League?"

"Are you kidding, Boy Wonder? You just out-hacked _the_ _Batman_—"

"And I revealed my true identity in the process. Artemis, that's not much of a victory! It was sloppy, and he'll know I did it in a heartbeat. He probably already knows."

"Yes, he does."

The entire team spun towards the voice in the shadows.

"You should be ashamed, Robin. That was a mess," Batman said.

Robin hung his head, "I know."

"You were not supposed to see the video."

"I know," Robin repeated, "But he's my best friend! How many times has he threatened to throw everything out the window when I've been kidnapped? I owe it to Wally to try my absolute hardest to find him. And if that means revealing everything in the process, to people who I trust unconditionally, then I'll do it," his hand reached up to his face and ripped off the domino mask that none of them—save Batman—had ever seen him remove. He revealed the most astonishing pair of cobalt eyes the team had ever seen, _"I'll do it every single time."_

"I know," Batman said.

And just like that, the argument was diffused. Robin—no, Dick Grayson—grinned up at his mentor. Batman didn't smile, but something about his face under the cowl softened.

"What did you learn from the video?" Batman asked the entire team, "Artemis asked the right questions."

"He's bold, and he doesn't fear the League. That means that he trusts his source, or his source doesn't know what they're doing," Robin said.

"But his source only knows about you guys, Superboy and Superman, Artemis and her family, Roy and Green Arrow, and Flash and Wally," Artemis said.

"That's true. So we've narrowed it down to anyone that knows that much. But why did they choose Wally? I think we have to assume that the Flash was the target of the attack."

"Yes, M'gann, that much was clear from the video. Why Flash? Why now?" Robin washed a hand over his eyes. His team was reminded that he had barely gotten half an hour of sleep.

"Robin, pull up a list of the people we know of that know those secrets. It's highly likely that his source is on that list," Batman told his protégé.

"Guys, it's possible that whoever this is didn't tell us all the secrets he knows. Remember, at the end of the video, he said, 'okay, enough secrets.' I think he knows more than he let on," M'gann said.

"That could very well be true," Kaldur said, speaking for the first time.

"So this list that Robin's getting could be too narrowed down?" Zatanna said, "I think that we're going to have to add anyone that knows anything more about anyone in the Justice League, including this information."

"And what about Jade? Her only affiliation to the League is through me."

"But she's going to marry Roy. He also has ties to the League," Robin said, "No; we can't narrow down this list. I'm pulling up a list of everyone who's had contact with the Justice League since it was formed."

"You have access to that information?"

Robin did not even pause in his typing as he looked up to glare at Artemis, "There's some we can check off right away, like Blue Beetle and Firestorm. I really doubt that if this guy had Flash under his control, then he would bother with this kind of set up for money. There are easier ways, and ways that don't attract the attention of the League."

"So he wants the League's attention," Batman said, "I've had the entire League under surveillance for the past two days. None of them have done anything out of the ordinary or spent much time talking to people that sent up red flags. Robin, were you able to isolate a picture of the man?"

"Nothing definitive," Robin swore heavily his first language, Romani, "This is the best I could do."

It was a grainy picture, and very dark. None of the team recognized him right away, but they could make out his basic features.

"I never thought he'd go that far," the Boy Wonder muttered, "Does he have any sense of decency whatsoever?"

"Robin, who is it? Tell me so I can go kick his butt!"

"Calm yourself, Artemis," Batman leaned a bit closer to the holoscrene, "You're positive, Robin?"

"Yes, Batman, I am. He's never needed an excuse to knock Wally around before."

"Robin?" Kaldur asked, "Who has taken Kid Flash?"

In response, Robin pulled a clearer picture up beside the video. The picture from the video was very poor quality, but there was no question they were of the same person.

"Not possible," Artemis said, "I saw Rudy West yesterday. There is no way he is that good of an actor. He seemed so—"

"Broken that his son was missing? No, he would be overly protective of his wife, but he would never look her directly in the face. He would avoid talking to his sister and her husband, and he would never mention Wally's name."

"Come to think of it, he always called Wally 'my son' or something of the sort. He hurried me away from Mary as soon as possible. Iris said it was just the way he was. He wouldn't let Flash in the house, either. I'm sure he only let Iris in because she's his sister."

"It is just how he is. I've never actually seen him lay a hand on Wally, or his mother, but I've seen the results. Wally doesn't scar that well anymore, but he still has the old ones, from before he got his powers."

"But why would Rudy want to kidnap his own son?" Artemis asked, "I mean, even if he is abusive to Wally, why would he risk Flash getting involved? He's got to know exactly who Flash is on good terms with. What makes him think he can go up against the entire Justice League?" Artemis turned meekly towards Batman, "We do have the whole League, right?"

The top of Batman's cowl wrinkled as he raised an eyebrow, "This is an attack on the whole League."

"Right, dumb question," Artemis muttered.

#####

_Wally? Where are you?_

_ Uhhhhhhh…._

_ Kid Flash? Give me a sign if you can hear me…_

_ Juhhhh…_

_ A sign, Kid Flash. Anything that might help me find you._

J'onn pulled out. The signal was too faint to track. The only thing he could tell was that Kid Flash was alive, but barely.

_Batman,_ the Martian reached into the Dark Knight's mind, _I'm coming to the Cave. I'm going to need M'gann's help._

#####

_**Recognizing Martian Manhunter A08**_

J'onn was talking before the computerized voice finished announcing him, "I believe I have made contact with Kid Flash, but the signal is too faint for me to be sure, and too faint for me to locate him."

"Hello, Megan!" Megan slapped her palm against her forehead, "An amplifier! Oh, why didn't I think of it before?" She took off, flying in the direction of the living chambers.

"What's an amplifier?" Conner asked.

"It will help to boost the signal to Kid Flash's mind so that we should be able to hear him."

"Uncle J'onn! I've got it!" M'gann cried. She flew towards her uncle, carrying Wally's favourite shirt.

"That will do, M'gann." J'onn took the shirt from his niece and closed his eyes. M'gann took his hands and joined him in his mind.

The team looked on in fascination as the pure telepathic energy created a glistening bubble—much like a soap bubble—around the two Martians. J'onn's face was the first to show any strain, as a small bead of sweat ran down from his temple. M'gann gasped, nearly breaking their concentration, but then appeared to redouble her efforts. By this time, they were both breathing heavily from their mental exertion.

Still, it had only been a few minutes since they had started when they broke apart. Batman caught J'onn as he crumpled backwards, saving him from a smarting crack to the back of his head. M'gann wasn't so lucky. As Conner and Robin raced to catch her, she discharged the remaining telekinetic energy from the bubble and blasted the two boys off their feet. Conner hit the opposite wall, but Robin managed to turn his momentum into a couple of careless backflips, though his landing was less than stellar. There was a telltale snap as he landed, and a wince.

"Sorry," M'gann said as she sat up, clutching her head, "I couldn't hold onto it."

"No problem," with gritted teeth, Robin realigned his broken finger and then taped his fingers with the tape he fished out of his utility belt, "Did you find Wally?"

J'onn let out a deep breath, "We barely got through to him. He doesn't remember much of his capture, or the days since. We narrowed his location down to ten square locks in Central City, not that far from his house."

Robin's face was grim, "It makes sense that Rudy wouldn't take him far. He does have a doting father appearance to keep up."

"What the hell is going on here?" A voice growled. The team, Batman, and Martian Manhunter turned.

The Flash was back.

"Barry—"

"Not this time, Batman. I want answers. Where is my nephew? Who took him? Why did you lock me in a closet? And why, if you've found Wally, are you all still STANDING THERE?"

Robin raised a dark eyebrow, "You locked him in a closet? You know he could just vibrate through the door, right?"

"We are standing here, Barry, because we are beginning to formulate a plan."

"Screw planning, Bruce! If we don't get to Wally soon, he's going to die!"

"Barry—"

"No, Bruce, you don't understand!" Barry cried, "Look, if it was me out there instead of him, we'd be too late. I'd be dead yesterday. Whoever has him has obviously been giving him water, but we're nearing three weeks on his internal clock. He needs to eat, now. So tell me who it is. Tell me who sent that video."

Robin sighed when it became clear that Batman wasn't going to answer, "Rudy West took him."

"RUDY WEST?" J'onn froze Barry's legs in place before he could run off, "Dammit, J'onn, let me go!"

"When we have a concise plan, and not a moment before, Flash, I will let you go."

Flash let out a wordless exclamation that was more of a growl than anything, "At least let me call Iris. Let me get her and Mary out of there—away from him!"

Batman nodded, and Flash whipped a phone out of nowhere in a flash. As Batman outlined where everyone was going to go, Flash called his wife.

"Iris, are you alone? Okay, make any excuse. Get out of there, and get Mary out too," Flash paused, "It's Rudy, Rudy took Wally. Look, we've got him on video and everything. Just get yourself and Mary out of there. I don't care that he's your brother, he's torturing Wally _right now!_ What makes you think that he's above hurting you? What do you mean, Mary won't come with you? Put her on!" Barry Allen's face became, if it was possible, even harder, "Mary, do you hear me? I am not talking as your brother-in-law right now. I am talking as the Flash and a member of the Justice League when I say that you must get out of there, right now. Think of your son! You go with Iris and get yourself to safety before your son loses both his parents in one go. Mary? Mary? Mary, what's going on?"

Anger flashed in Flash's eyes, "What have you done, Rudy? If you've so much as laid a hand on my wife—or yours—you will never wake up again. Rudy!"

"Track that call, now, Robin," Batman said as Flash threw his phone across the Cave, narrowly missing a lamp.

"J'onn, let me out," Flash's voice was dangerously calm, "Let my legs free. We have to find Rudy, now. This isn't just about Wally now. He has Mary and Iris, too."

Artemis threw up her hands and let out an inhuman shriek, "What next? What will this scumbag do next?"

"Calm yourselves, Flash, Artemis. We will leave once the location has been pinned down."

"Dick, I hope you're going as fast as you can. Every second we waste here is one more second that my wife, sister-in-law, and nephew are alone with that Neanderthal."

"Barry, go easy on him. He wants to find Wally, Iris, and Mary just as much as you do."

"J'onn, Iris is pregnant. If she loses that baby, nothing in the world is going to stop me from tearing Rudy West limb from limb. She's under enough stress as it is. Now tell me what the hell the plan is!"

"We have found the location of the phone you called, Flash. We will start there and canvass out, running a grid search. You will take the Bio ship with the team."

"Wh—"

"One, you will blow your cover if you go out in public looking like that, and Kid Flash's as well. Two, you'll destroy the interior of the Batmobile. Three, so the team can keep an eye on you. Four, so you don't go running off and get yourself killed. Rudy West is a dangerous criminal, and from what we know about him, you would just aggravate the situation."

"I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself!" Flash cried.

"Are you? You'll do nothing for your family if you go on like this," J'onn said, "There remains another problem."

"What's that, Uncle J'onn?"

"If Flash comes to rescue Wallace West, then his cover will be blown. If any others of the League go, there is still the possibility that they could blow his cover. No, we need something else. Something to draw the eyes of the public away from Wally, Iris, and Mary."

Robin nodded, "A distraction." He smirked.

J'onn turned to Conner, "How good are you at throwing a tantrum?"

When Conner just raised his eyebrow in confusion, Artemis said, "He's the best."


	4. React

Chapter 3 - React

"Wally?" Iris whispered, "Come on, Wally. Wake up for me." The boy in front of her barely stirred at her words. Iris sat against the wall of the small cell, cradling her nephew. It had been an hour since Iris' brother, Rudolph West, had taken her and her sister-in-law, Mary, captive. Iris didn't know where Mary was, as only she had been thrown in with Wally.

Wally, who had been taken nearly three _days_ ago. No, he looked as though he'd been gone for months. His muscles were emaciated, and she could tell he wasn't healing anymore. Iris was trying very hard not to concentrate on that. Nor the fact that she could tell he was dying…_enough of that!_ She yelled at herself, _you're Iris Allen, wife to the Flash. Pull yourself together!_

Where was Barry? Something must have happened, because he knew it was Rudy. That meant he'd be there soon, right?

Iris glanced at the boy in her arms. How many times had she wished he had been born to her, and not Rudy? And Mary, sweet, meek little Mary. How was she going to survive her husband's first obvious betrayal? Iris had seen Rudy lie directly to Mary's face about anything and everything. She cursed herself for not doing anything, not trying harder to warn Mary when the submissive woman had originally disregarded her cautions. Rudy had doted on Mary, but the snide voice in the back of Iris' head had always made her wonder just how long it would last.

Now her nephew—her baby—paid the price for her passiveness. She and Barry loved Wally as if he was their own, and in many ways, he was. But this—her betrayal, was inexcusable.

Iris sighed and ran her free hand over her stomach. She had found out exactly a week ago that she was two months pregnant—and that was as far as she was going to get. Not all the blood in the cell had come from Wally. Every instinct in her body was screaming at her to just curl into a ball and break down, but that was against her nature.

Even though she knew she'd just lost her baby. _Her child, her's and Barry's baby. Oh, what was she supposed to tell him? If it was a boy, he would have been called Jayson. Don for short, so we would never have two Jays. If it was a girl, she would have been called Dawn._

Beside Iris, Wally shifted.

"Wally?" she asked, not daring to raise her voice above a whisper. And then, "RUDY!"

"Hello, Iris," said a voice from the shadows.

"Show yourself, you coward! You're killing your own son!"

Rudy stepped forward, "No, that would be your dear, sweet Barry. I'm not a child killer, Iris."

"HOW DARE YOU!" Iris shrieked, "You already have the blood of an innocent child on your hands—I'm begging you, don't kill another, especially your own!"

Rudy's face contorted in confusion, "No children have died yet, Iris."

"You fool. LOOK AT ME!" yelled Iris. She stood up, absolutely covered in blood, "I just lost my child! And you're murdering yours in cold blood, after you just killed mine. Do you really think the fact that you're my brother is going to save you? I am done covering for you, Rudy. This is beyond—beyond everything! What the hell are you thinking?"

"You were pregnant?" Rudy stepped back a step.

"What does it matter to you if I was or not? You threw your own son in this hell hole, and then your wife and _me_…and for what, Rudy? What could be more important to you than your _wife_ and _child?_"

Her brother didn't answer.

"Does your son really mean that little to you?" Iris' face softened, "Rudy, I love you. But I won't stand by anymore. You are going away for this, brother."

"That's where you're wrong, little sister," Rudy smirked, "We're all going somewhere better for this."

#####

M'gann took her customary seat at the controls of the Bio ship. To her left was Robin, but in front of him, Superboy's seat was empty. Artemis had taken Kaldur's space in the seat in front of M'gann, and the Flash was sitting in Wally's usual place. Zatanna sat just in front of Robin.

"Flash?"

"Yes, Mars Bar?"

"You're hurting her."

"Artemis? Zatanna?"

"No, the Bio ship. You're going to set her on fire soon. She doesn't like that."

"Oops," Flash stopped vibrating and patted the console in front of him, "Sorry, girl."

"She likes you. Even though you almost set her on fire."

"Oh. That's good, right?"

"Yes. She's less likely to jettison your seat at twelve thousand feet that way. She likes Wally, even though he has set her on fire before, ergo she likes you."

"M'gann," Artemis interrupted, "Nobody uses the word 'ergo' anymore."

"Oh, really? But I—"

"Focus."

"Yes, of course, Robin."

#####

"You want me to scream for Superman to pay more attention to me in the middle of a crowded street?"

"Yes. The general public does not know that your relationship has improved, and it is probably the best distraction we could have on such short notice."

"Are you sure that will work, J'onn?"

"It will work, if Conner is willing and Superman is caught unawares. Will you do it, Conner?"

"…"

"Conner?"

"…will it save Wally?"

"If we are dealt the right cards," Kaldur said, "It should save Kid Flash's future. _Wally's_ life is in the hands of Robin and the League."

"Okay."

#####

"The distraction's in place," Robin said, consulting his wrist-computer, "We can leave now."

"Thank God," Artemis breathed.

M'gann lifted the Bio ship into the air and put it in stealth mode, "Course set for Central City. We should be there in an hour."

Flash groaned, but held his tongue. He could run to Central City in a third the time, but Batman would have his hide—if he didn't get himself killed first by the trap they were undoubtedly walking into. No, even Barry Allen's 'overprotective psycho mother-hen mode' was starting to see reason, when by all rights; reason should have gone out the window days ago. Right now, Wally and Iris needed him functioning at maximum. And anyway, he had trusted Batman almost as long as he had known the Dark Knight. If anyone could get his boy, it would be him.

Flash jolted completely vertical. _Had he just thought of Wally as _his_ son?_

It was basically true, anyways. Wally had been six years old when Barry had married Iris. It only took a short while for him to warm up to Barry, and after that, Wally had spent much of his time at the Allen's. When Wally was eight, Iris had begun to notice the bruises. When he was ten, Wally had shown up on their front porch beaten bloody, cradling a broken wrist. Rudy had been arrested for that, but the case had fallen through when Mary had insisted that nothing was wrong. It had not taken much for Barry to convince Batman to give Rudy a scare. That had seemingly solved the problem—though Barry didn't know that for sure, as Wally had gotten his powers later on that same year.

Speed healing did wonders for covering up bruising. It was only when Rudy had broken Wally's leg that Iris and Barry had realized. Wally had confessed that the beatings had never actually stopped, and it was all Barry could do to sit there and watch his nephew go stir-crazy, not being able to run. That was around the time that Wally developed his claustrophobia, Barry recalled.

He'd woken one day to find Wally joking with Robin and Speedy. Barry had known they were friends, but not that close. It was almost as if they were brothers—three boys with three different orphaning circumstances (although Wally's parents were still alive). Basically, they were three boys on their own in the world but for their mentors and each other.

"ETA thirty minutes," M'gann said from her seat in the pilot's chair, startling Barry out of his memories. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his arm. He turned to find Artemis leaning towards him.

"We're going to find them," she said, "And they're going to be okay."

"How can you know?"

"Wally is stronger than that. And Iris is made of stronger stuff than you think, if she's managed to put up with Wally and you for sixteen years."

The side of Barry's mouth tugged upwards into a small smile—his first in many days, "Thank you, Artemis."

She smiled back at him, "Thank you, Uncle Barry."

#####

Wally shifted beside her. His organs were starting to fail, and he obviously didn't have control of even his most basic bodily functions. He was breathing on his own, but that was about it. He'd started coughing up blood about fifteen minutes before. Even though Iris had no medical training, she knew that was a bad sign.

Something moved in the shadows beside her. A gloved hand covered her mouth before she could scream.

"Iris?" the shadow whispered.

Iris nearly cried in relief. The shadow was Robin, Wally's teammate. And when you saw Robin, the rest of the team wasn't ever far away. _Barry was coming_.

_All of us are going to a better place for this._ Rudy's words came back to her just as Robin moved his hand.

"It's a trap," she said.

"We know," he responded, "Flash and Batman are trying to flush it out. Are you alright?"

"Wally, you have to get Wally out of here!" she cried.

"Calm down, Iris," he said, "M'gann, get him out of here," he ordered. Iris realized that the Martian girl was also in the cell with her. Robin's voice was hard, and Iris could tell by the set of his jaw, even in the low light, that he was barely restraining himself.

Somewhere in the distance, something exploded.

"I think Barry and Bruce found the trap," Iris muttered.

"Can you walk?" Robin asked bluntly. She took his hand, standing on shaky legs.

"IRIS! WALLY!"

#####

Robin dropped out of the Bio ship with M'gann behind him. Artemis and Flash had already melted away into the night, off to meet with Batman, Black Canary, and Green Arrow to fish out the trap that Rudy West had no doubt staged. Again, Robin cursed in Romani.

_I know you want to be with them, Robin,_ M'gann said in his head.

He groaned silently, _That fight is Flash's; no matter how much I want to beat that lowlife to a pulp._

_ Someone has to get Wally_, M'gann reminded him, _it's best if it's you._

Together, he and M'gann slipped in through an air duct. The facility where they were was not very large, and the Martian and ninja boy wasted no time in finding where Wally was locked up. The first surprise came when they realized Iris West was in the cell, as well.

Robin set to work on the lock, picking it easily, "Iris?" he said when the door swung open.

"It's a trap," she whispered.

"We know," he said, "Flash and Batman are trying to flush it out. Are you alright?"

"Wally, you have to get Wally out of here!" she yelled, her eyes widening and flashing to her nephew beside her.

"Calm down, Iris," he said, "M'gann, get him out of here." Something exploded behind Robin. It was not close enough to be of worry—at the moment.

"I think Barry and Bruce found the trap," Iris breathed. Robin held out a hand to her.

"Can you stand?"

"IRIS! WALLY!" It was Barry Allen's voice from far away. Beside him, Iris leaned against the wall, and behind him, Wally turned slightly towards the sound.

Robin turned to face his best friend. Wally was in a sorry state. His body was completely wasted, but as far as he could tell, nothing was broken. There were some nasty bruises, though, and every so often, Wally would cough up blood mixed with saliva. 

"Rob?" The voice was so soft he could barely hear it, but it was all that Wally could manage.

"I'm here, KF. M'gann's going to get you out of here."

"Aunt Iris…"

"I'll take care of her. You go with M'gann."

"'Kay," he breathed.

"NO! YOU WILL NOT TAKE MY SON FROM ME!" The voice was loud and deep and it made Wally flinch so hard towards Robin that he toppled over. Robin caught him before his head hit the ground.

_Get him out, M'gann!_ He cried. But it was too late for her to move him, as Rudy came barreling around the corner.

"DROP HIM, GRAYSON, OR YOU WILL MEET THE SAME END AS YOUR PARENTS! DO YOU WANT TO FEEL WHAT IT'S LIKE TO REALLY FALL?"

Despite all his training, Robin felt himself freeze up. He'd never been afraid of heights—but he couldn't even deny to himself that he was afraid of falling.

"No," Iris pushed herself off the wall, "You will never hurt anyone again."

Rudy laughed, "Do you see this, little sister?" he waved his hand, a conspicuous red button in his palm, "If you make so much as one move towards me, well, I won't have a sister or a son anymore. This is our better place."

"No," Iris repeated, "You will not hurt us anymore," she took a step forward.

"I will break you, Iris! Do you remember how easy it was for me to break your arm when you were eight? Oh, you screamed so much that day."

"You're ill, Rudy. I was a child, just as Wally is now. You will not hurt me again! You've already killed my child, but I will not let you take any of my family away from me anymore," she stumbled to the door of the cell while Rudy looked on in shock.

Robin cursed himself for not noticing the blood on her legs. She had miscarried, and recently. Rudy West had no chance of surviving the night, not when he had caused the death of his sister's child, of the Flash's second child.

Speaking of…it became apparent why the Flash had not gotten there _in a flash_. He arrived, leaning heavily on Batman. Blood gushed heavily from a wound in his leg, but the flow was already slowing. _Rudy had shot him. _Green Arrow and Black Canary flanked them. Flash caught sight of Wally in Robin's arms and pushed off of Batman, standing shakily on his own.

He growled, "Rudy, what have you done?"

A look of shock passed over Rudy's face, "But—but I shot you!"

"Did you really think that was going to keep me down for long, you warthog-faced buffoon?"

He smirked, "The curtain will fall soon, Barry. And it'll take you down with it."

"Look around, Rudy. Most of the Justice League is here. There is no chance of you getting out of here alive."

"Barry!" Iris cried, "Get out! He's got a bomb! He doesn't intend for any of us to—"

Rudy crossed to Iris and backhanded her across the face, "That's enough, I believe, sweet sister."

Barry let out an inhuman growl, but before he could do anything (to everyone's disbelief), Artemis dropped from the roof, an arrow nocked in her compound bow.

"Don't you touch her!" She cried.

"I was wondering where you were, little girl. But it's too late, Artemis."

Someone screamed, and the arrow punched through his shoulder just as he pressed the conspicuous red button.


	5. Interact

Chapter 4 - Interact

In the days that followed, no one remembered exactly what had happened in that moment, or who had screamed. M'gann thought it was Artemis, and Artemis swore up and down that it was Iris. Iris, on the other hand, thought it was Mary.

The point stood that none of them could identify it—until the dust settled and the damage could be surveyed.

It didn't turn out to be any of them. When the way cleared, a young woman stood in their midst, and Rudy West was dead at her feet.

The woman had a quiver strapped to her back, and a black bow in her hands.

"Who are you?" Robin cried from his position with Wally in his arms, "What gave you the right to interfere?"

"I'd have thought you'd remember me, little Robin. Did you think I would stand by when a member of my family was being tortured?" her voice was soft, but strong, and she threw back her hood—her _green_ hood, "Most of you know me by a different name, but generally, I was called Speedy."

"Speedy?" Artemis asked, "As in, the original Speedy?"

"None other," the girl said, "Now, I think Wally here needs to be taken to the Med Bay of the Watchtower, and Batman needs to deal with the body."

The unmoving Leaguers unfroze.

Flash was at Iris' side in an instant, gathering her in his arms. They hovered over their nephew, both of them touching him. Iris was sobbing silently. Artemis held back a bit, but changed her mind when Iris beckoned her forward.

"How is he, Robin?"

"He's breathing, but he needs medical help, now. M'gann, get him to the Bio ship, and we'll fly him to the Watchtower."

M'gann threw one last look at Speedy, but did as she was asked.

As soon as his nephew was safe in the Bio Ship, Barry scooped Iris into his arms and ran her as fast as he could to the nearest Zeta Tube. They set course for the Watchtower, and beat the Bio ship by a good five minutes. Batman had made some calls and brought in the best doctors the League had access to. Together with Red Arrow, who had been dispatched to collect them, the team of surgeons arrived at the Watchtower via the Zeta Tubes. Led by Dr. Laura Lannister, the six professionals combined nine PHDs and twelve Bachelor degrees. After Dr. Lannister, there was Dr. Tanner Proll, Dr. Luke Parker, Dr. Paige Stuart, Dr. Hikaru Sato, and Dr. Nathaniel Jefferson. Without even saying anything to Barry, Dr. Stuart, a maternity specialist, took Iris by the hand and led her to a bed in the Med Bay. Dr. Lannister, Proll, Parker, Sato and Jefferson set to work as soon as Wally arrived via Bio Ship. Robin, Roy, and Barry began to follow, but the door…was shut in their face.

M'gann turned to Robin, "Where's Mary West?"

There was a commotion by the Zeta Tubes. A small woman, hanging off of Black Canary, appeared. It was obviously Mary West, Wally's mother. She was not hurt, but she was sobbing silently.

More sounds came from the Zeta Tubes.

_**Recognizing Speedy.**_

_** Recognizing Green Arrow, etcetera.**_

"Etcetera?" M'gann whispered.

"It's shorthand for when most of the League comes through the Tubes at once," Robin explained.

"You were gone for five years, Oliver," one of the group said. Robin and M'gann were joined by Zatanna and Artemis, who had come up with the Leaguers. The girl in the green hood, Speedy, stalked away from the Tubes, followed steadily by Green Arrow, "I lost my brother then, and he never came back. But I got a new one, one that I was closer to than ever before. When Green Arrow replaced Oliver Queen, I got the brother that I had always needed."

"Oh my god," Robin gasped, "Thea Queen?"

The woman turned, "I knew it would be you to first recognize me, little Robin."

Much to Zatanna's, Artemis', and M'gann's surprise, the boy broke into a huge smile and launched himself at Speedy—or rather, Thea Queen. She caught him in a hug, and dropped a kiss on his head.

Robin pulled away, "Where have you been, Thea?" He cast his eyes downwards behind his mask, "We really needed you here. Roy really needed you here."

"We can play catch-up later. Right now, have we had any word on Wally?"

"No, they just took him in about five minutes ago. Iris is in there as well. She lost her baby."

Thea let go of Robin and grabbed Barry in a hug. The Flash had barely moved since the doctors had taken Iris and Wally, and he didn't respond when Thea hugged him. Thea pulled back and slapped him across the face.

Barry recoiled, "What the hell? Speedy, what was that for?"

"You're being a bonehead, and you need to stop feeling sorry for yourself. There was nothing you could have done. Now, go to Mary and get her off of my sister. She's not strong enough to get through this on her own."

It only took an hour afterwards, an hour of Marry silently sobbing in Barry's arms, an hour of stony-faced Leaguers and equally unemotional protégés, for someone to break.

It was Artemis, "What's going on in there?" she cried, "I can't take much more of this! Is Wally going to be alright? What about Iris? And who the hell are you?" She spun to Thea to yell the last question, "I thought Roy was Speedy!"

"Roy was Speedy, Artemis. But I was Speedy before he was. Ollie called me Speedy from when I was born," she stood up and held her hand out to Artemis, "I'm Thea Queen, formerly known as Speedy. I'm Oliver's younger sister."

Green Arrow spoke, "She's been MIA for the past five years."

"I haven't been MIA, Ollie! I told you I was leaving."

"You just never bothered to tell us where you were going or when you'd be home. Nor did you bother to email, call, text, or anything. For five years, Thea!"

Thea was saved from answering when the door to the Med Bay opened and Dr. Lannister stepped out.

None of the gathered Leaguers saw Barry jump up and run to her, "How are they?" He asked breathlessly.

"Iris will be fine. The fetus, however, has passed away. We'll have to run some more tests before we know how long she was carrying it for. Wallace managed to pull through the surgery to repair damage to his kidneys and other internal organs. We have him hooked up to an IV, but it will be touch and go for the next few days. He is strong, though, so he should pull through. Iris is ready to have visitors, but Wallace needs to stay in isolation. Three visitors," Dr. Lannister held up a hand when everybody made to move.

Black Canary took charge, "Flash, Artemis, Robin."

The aforementioned trio stood and followed Dr. Lannister. Not even Mary West protested Canary's choice.

#####

Iris had her eyes closed when they came in. Someone had put her in a shapeless hospital gown, but she was only attached to one IV. Barry approached her, and Artemis and Robin hung back by the door.

"Barry, it's unnerving when you don't talk. I can hear you breathing," Iris muttered from the bed, "Artemis, Robin, come in."

"How are you, Iris?" Barry asked.

She opened her eyes, "I'm fine, physically at least. How's Wally? No one will tell me if he's okay."

"Shh, Iris, he's fine. They won't let us see him, but he's going to pull through."

Iris relaxed against the pillows, "Thank goodness. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if he wasn't alright. How's Mary?"

"Hysterical. She's with Aunt Dinah and Aunt Diana now," Robin said.

"And my brother? Who's arrow was that?"

"It wasn't mine," Artemis whispered, "She said her name was Thea Queen."

"It was Thea? Was it really Thea, Barry?" He nodded, "That little sneak. She always told me that she would be the one to kill my brother. She wanted me to have no guilt over the issue. But how could I not feel guilty, when one of my best friends had to take matters into her own hands when I was too cowardly to protect my own family?"

"Iris, where is this coming from?" Barry pushed her red hair off her face, "You're the strong one in your family, don't you know that by now?"

Iris gripped Barry's hands, "How could we let our baby stay in that house, Barry, with him? I knew what he was like, what he's done to children, what he's done to _me._ How could I let this happen?"

"We had no legal right to him, Iris, and you know that, not with Mary swearing up and down that everything was alright in that house. And Wally would never leave Mary alone with him."

"I know," Iris finally began to cry, throwing her arms around her husband, "I should be so angry right now. I mean, he nearly killed my boy, and he murdered our baby. But Thea killed him and all I can think of is that I just lost my brother."

"He's your family, Iris; you were hard-wired to love him from the moment you were born, no matter what he did to you."

"It's the same reason I still love my father," Artemis said softly. She had moved to curl up in a chair beside Iris' bed, "No matter what he's done, how many times he's tried to break me. Don't get me wrong, I despise him. But I haven't ever stopped loving him, not even when he broke my arm or when he put my mother in a wheelchair. I suspect Wally's much the same. Rudy may be a bastard, but without him, Wally wouldn't have ever existed. Without him, our team probably wouldn't exist, and I would never have been saved."

Iris let go of Barry and gestured to Artemis, "Come here, Arty," and threw her arms around her, "You were saving yourself, Artemis, when Bats and Arrow found you. That took enormous courage, to get out of your family business. And don't think I've forgotten you, little Robin."

Artemis turned to look at Dick. The boy looked smaller than she had ever seen him.

"No one's called me that since Thea left," he muttered.

"Who exactly is Thea; apart from her being Green Arrow's sister?"

"Well, when you were first introduced to the League, Oliver said you were Thea's daughter. Most of them didn't know Thea all that well, so they believed it. Fifteen years ago, when Oliver was inducted into the League, Thea was Speedy. She was nineteen at the time, and she quickly became like a little sister to all of us. She was the only family Oliver had left, after his father was killed and his mother and stepfather went to jail for said murder and embezzlement, respectively. Thea was seventeen then, and she had a bit of a drug problem. Oliver took her on as his protégé, but she cleaned herself up on her own. Then, five years ago, she just up and left. She told Ollie she was leaving, and the next day there wasn't a trace of her left in the house, though they'd both lived there since they were born."

"Why did she leave?"

"You'll have to ask her for yourself. She hasn't told us yet. She hasn't even told Dinah yet, and Dinah used to babysit Thea. Now, are the three of you okay? I know you're not alright, but will you be able to get through this?"

"Seriously, Iris, you're asking _us_ that?" Artemis cried, but Barry just placed a kiss on Iris' forehead.

"She wouldn't be Iris if she didn't, Artemis," Barry said.

"Alright," Iris said, pushing herself into a sitting position, "Wally will be fine, and we can't go and see him yet, so go and get some sleep, little Robin. You too, Artemis, you both look dead on your feet. Barry, I want to talk to Thea, so go and pry her away from Oliver's tirade."

#####

As Robin left Iris' room, he stole a glance in the direction of Wally's. The door was firmly shut, and the blinds pulled down.

"Robin! Artemis!" M'gann cried, "You're just in time!" the Martian girl was smiling for the first time in a long time. It took Robin longer than it should have to realize that the group had been joined by Kaldur, Conner, Martian Manhunter, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman.

"What's going on?" Artemis asked, pulling off her mask. Flash sped over to Thea and whispered Iris' message. The woman followed him back towards Iris.

"Someone managed to get Conner's 'distraction' on video. It's on the news now."

Robin smirked, "I was hoping someone would do that, so I wouldn't have to hack the CCTV cameras."

"Shh, it's back on!"

"_Welcome back to Channel 10 news. I'm Alanna Penny, filling in for Iris Allen. We have news out of Metropolis, where apparently the superhero known as 'Superboy' appeared to lose his temper earlier this afternoon. We go to Abby Hunt for more."_

The shot changed from the perky blonde woman to another woman, this time a brunette.

_"Thanks, Alanna. Now, there are varying reports as to whether Superboy is Superman's son or younger brother. Some has also suggested that he is a clone. None of these have been confirmed. _

_ At about 3 o'clock this afternoon, Superboy landed—quite literally—on the streets of Metropolis. The crater that he left encompasses an entire street. Superman soon arrived on scene, but not until after Superboy had begun to yell at him. Some of the things he said were akin to the acts of vandalism against Superman that took place last year. The argument between Superman and Superboy persisted for almost an hour before Martian Manhunter and Aqualad arrived, seemingly to break up the argument. No one is quite sure how, but both Martian Manhunter and Aqualad were soon drawn into the argument. Needless to say, the four heroes took the entire town for a ride. Eventually, everything appeared to be straightened out when Wonder Woman, Hawkwoman, and Aquaman appeared. According to witnesses, Wonder Woman hit Superman and Superboy upside the head, and then dragged both Kryptonians out of the street by their ears. Afterwards, Aquaman led Aqualad and Martian Manhunter away, and Hawkwoman stayed to work on crowd control. Here is the footage from the day's events."_

Abby stopped talking as the footage came up on the screen. Whoever shot it was clearly an amateur, but it got the point across. The video was from the tail end of the argument, detailing Superboy yelling his head off and Superman looking simply stunned, but yelling back at him anyways. The news station fast forward to the arrival of J'onn and Kaldur, and then to Wonder Woman slapping both boys upside the head. Most of the gathered Leaguers were laughing, and Superboy was smiling slightly.

"You did a good job, Conner," M'gann said, wrapping her arms around him. It only took a few seconds, but Artemis was laughing hysterically, tears leaking from her eyes. Kaldur raised an eyebrow and looked to Robin for an answer. Robin had sat down on the couch between Wonder Woman and Black Canary—and immediately fallen asleep as soon as everyone was distracted by the newscast. He was leaning against Wonder Woman, and she was stroking his hair. M'gann made a move to touch him, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She looked up to see Batman, wear the most tender expression she had ever seen on his face.

"Let him sleep," Batman said. M'gann nodded.

"The newscast didn't mention anything about a quarter of the League being in Central City, but we're not quite out of the woods just yet," This was from Wonder Woman. She was glaring at Green Arrow.

"Okay. Where is Red Arrow?" Kaldur asked.

"He left as soon as we got here," Dinah said, "He took one look at Thea and bolted. I think Miss Jade is going to be paying our little Thea a little visit quite soon."

"What has he been doing these past couple of days, anyways?" Artemis asked, still giggling.

"Do you think it was easy to track down all six of these doctors? He managed to find a maternity specialist from France, two cardiologists from Japan and Canada, and three surgeons from Australia, Boston, and Britain. Mind you, we've used them all before, and Bats ran a background check, but Roy had to track them all down from the four corners of the globe," J'onn said.

"So, in other words, you sent him on a planet-wide scavenger hunt. I was wondering why he wasn't around. How'd you get him to submit to that?"

Ollie grinned, "We didn't."

"You tricked him?"

"Actually, that was Dickie over there. Only a Bat could pull off what he did."

"So what happened?"

"Well, Dick dropped him at Superman's Fortress of Solitude and gave him an ultimatum: find the six people on the list, or face the Zeta tubes calling him names like Aquawife or Zazzles for the rest of his life." 

Artemis started laughing again, though not nearly as erratically as before, "One last question. Where's Mary?"

"She went to the bathroom. Now that I think about it though, that was nearly fifteen minutes ago."

Batman glared at Wonder Woman and Black Canary, "Diana, Dinah, you left Mary West alone? Do you not realize what a woman like her, who has suffered the way she has, could do to herself and those around her when left alone?"

Artemis jumped up from her kneeling position and sprinted in the direction of the closest bathroom. Dinah vaulted the couch and followed, barely keeping pace with the archer.

"Mary!" Artemis cried, pounding on the bathroom door, "Open up!"

"Move!" Black Canary barked. As soon as Artemis was clear, she kicked the door so hard it flew off its hinges. It clattered to the ground with a deafening sound, but the figure lying just past where it landed didn't even stir.

"Mary!" Artemis shrieked, "NO! You have no right to rob Wally of both his parents!" She dove towards the small, red-headed woman and clamped both her hands around Mary's sluggishly bleeding wrists. Beside Artemis, Dinah removed her scarf and tore it in half. She tied one part above Mary's right wrist, and the other above her left.

"DICK! M'GANN! SUPERBOY! KALDUR! ZATANNA! BARRY!" there was a definite note of panic in Artemis' voice, "OLLIE! BATMAN! ANYONE! COME ON MARY, WAKE UP!"

But she didn't. By the time the doctors arrived, Artemis' hands were slippery with blood and tears ran down her cheeks like silver silk.

"Artemis," this was Oliver's voice, and Dinah's hands were on hers, "You need to let go of Mary. You've done all you can. Step back and let the doctors in."

Smaller hands replaced Dinah's and she was led away, "Let's get you cleaned up," she found herself in a large shower room. Someone pushed her under a nozzle—fully clothed—and she watched tendrils of blood-infused water snake their way down the drain. The same hands gently coaxed her hair from her high ponytail and massaged her scalp.

"Robin? I thought you were asleep," she whispered.

"You called for me, Artemis. You called for all of us." Then suddenly, Kaldur and Superboy were there and M'gann and Zatanna were stripping her down to her sports bra and helping her wash the blood out of her clothes. Robin, Kaldur, and Superboy almost got up and left, but Artemis pulled them back. She needed the team right then. Not all of the moisture on her face was from the shower. It took only moments for her to break down completely, clutching Robin as if her life depended on him. The Team sat in the shower room until they were soaked to the bone, one by one dropping off into a deep sleep. The Flash arrived and roused them after a few minutes and sent them to dry off and go to bed.

Somehow, the six teenagers all ended up together, dropping off one after the other in, though they didn't know it at the time (well, maybe Robin did, but the opportunity was to asterous to pass up), in Batman's massive king-sized bed.

None of them noticed the shadow in the green hood pass into the room and curl up at the foot of the bed.


	6. Intact

Chapter 5 - Intact

Robin cracked open an eye. Of course he was the first to wake up. The room was dark, but that was too be expected when one woke up in outer space.

Opening his eyes fully, he wondered what had woken him up. This wasn't the first time he had fallen asleep in Batman's bed. Robin lay still for a moment and took an inventory.

Artemis was sprawled out to his left, her head resting in the crook of his arm. Kaldur slept like a rod on his right, with Zatanna curled into a ball between them. Conner was using his legs as a pillow and sometime during the night (or whatever time it was. Quite frankly, he didn't care), M'gann had slung an arm over his stomach. The Martian was lying at Conner's side, squished between him and Zatanna above her.

Letting his unmasked eyes wander further, Robin discovered Thea at the end of the bed. She awoke quickly under his gaze and held a finger to her lips as she stole out of the room. Shrugging slightly at her eccentricities, he tried to shift his legs slightly, but Conner had him in an iron grip. The clone wore no shirt, but all the others were in some semblance of pajamas. Robin himself had put on a pair of blue boxers and an old tee-shirt before crawling into bed. Artemis was wearing a camisole and cotton pants, much the same as Zatanna and M'gann. In fact, most of the clothing they were wearing belonged to Artemis. Kaldur was still in much the same outfit as his uniform.

Robin tried to move his legs again as he realized what exactly had woken him up in the first place. Conner wouldn't release his legs, so he propped himself up on an elbow and proceeded to poke the clone awake.

It didn't work.

"Conner?" Robin whispered, still poking his friend, "C'mon, Conner, wake up." Conner grunted and turned his head, but for all his super hearing, he still didn't wake.

Artemis shifted closer to Robin, opening her eyes, "Robin?" her voice was hoarse and heavy with sleep, "What's up?"

The little bird gestured towards his legs, "Conner's got my legs. He's not letting go anytime soon, and I really have to pee."

Artemis reached across Robin to give Conner a shove. The clone barely shifted, but he released Robin's legs enough for him to wiggle free. Robin flashed Artemis a grateful smile and hoisted himself up on the iron bars above the four-poster bed and scampered away.

Artemis smiled to herself and turned over. No, she didn't have to get up just yet.

#####

Robin had every intension of going right back to bed once he'd relieved himself, but then his cell phone rang. He checked the caller ID, "Hey, Babs, what's up?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you the same question, Dick?" Robin could almost hear Barbara Gordon glaring at him, "You've been AWOL for almost five days. What's going on? You promised to call me as soon as there was some news about Wally."

"Sorry, Babs I got caught up in everything and then I'm pretty sure we've been asleep for most of the last twelve hours. We found Wally yesterday. He's in bad shape, but he should be fine."

"Who took him?"

"His father. And no, you can't go hunt him down, because he's already dead. Thea Queen came back and shot him."

"Thea's back?" Babs shouted, "Give me fifteen minutes and I'll be there. I have to see her in case she disappears again!"

"Babs, that might not be such a great idea. You see, we're at the Watchtower and most of my Team is here—"

"Too bad. If you think I'm passing up a chance to not only tease Wally on his sickbed but also see Thea, you have another thing coming. Anyways, Batman gave Batgirl access to the Watchtower in case of emergency." And then she immediately hung up on him, giving him no chance to respond.

Robin sighed and pulled a 'hello, Megan!' He may as well go and check on Wally.

Robin found Roy outside the door to Wally's room, asleep on the couch. Normally Robin would never pass up a chance to annoy Roy, but today he merely curled up at his brother's feet.

"Robin?" Roy asked. So he wasn't asleep, "Why are you awake?"

"Why are you?" Robin countered with another question.

"I'm worried."

"So am I. He'll be okay, though. Physically, at least."

"What about emotionally? Who knows what he's gone through the past few days. Wally's not like you, Dick. He's too happy to immediately bounce back from tragedy. He's just lost both his parents within hours of each other—"

"Mary died?"

Roy sighed, "She lost too much blood. I didn't think she had the strength in her to kill herself." Robin shook his head in affirmation, "Wally's going to be heartbroken. We're going to have quite a ride on our hands."

"Where's Barry?"

"With Iris. Mary only passed away a few hours ago. Barry left to break the news."

"I'm going to go and see if anyone else is awake. Heads up, Batgirl is on her way up here. Apparently she wants to see Thea in case she disappears again. Where is Thea, anyways?"

"I think she's in the kitchen." Roy grimaced

"Roy, I think you need to go talk to her. Preferably before Jade hears about this."

"The past is in the past, Dick. Speaking of, heads up to you. I know you've forgotten, but it's April first."

There was a barely perceptible stumble in Robin's gait, but Roy saw it. The Boy Wonder turned back, "When can we see Wally?"

Roy raised an eyebrow, but didn't press it. Dick would talk when he needed to, "In an hour or so, Dr. Lannister says. And on that topic, I still haven't forgiven you for dropping me at the Fortress of Solitude."

Robin attempted to grin, but it was obviously forced, "Have you seen Batman?"

"He left for the Batcave just after Dr. Lannister told us Mary didn't make it," Roy sat up, "Don't go off on your own, Dick; you know that only makes things worse. Anyway, Batgirl will be flushing you out soon, and you'd better not look like you're going to start crying at any moment."

"You just don't want to be alone in case Thea comes back."

"Touché."

"You never really told me what happened between you and her. I mean, you were fifteen when she left, and she was nearly thirty. What could have happened?"

"Think of your feelings for Batgirl right now, Robin. Then, next year come and tell me how they've changed."

"I see. You loved her."

"I had a crush, nothing more, but I acted like an idiot about it."

"What else is new?"

"You're not helping."

"I'm not supposed to be. You're going to marry Jade now. Don't let either her or Artemis hear about this—"

"Hear about what?"

Robin spun around, one hand reaching for the back of his head in a sheepish gesture, "Nothing, Artemis."

"Right, I totally believe that," Artemis scoffed, "So can we see Wally yet?"

"Not quite," Roy said, standing up, "They're still running some tests. One of his kidneys almost completely shut down. Dr. Sato said they should be able to salvage it, but they've put him on a transplant list anyways."

"But aren't all of his organs super as well? How's he going to use his powers if one kidney only functions at the rate of a normal human?"

"Better his kidney than any other organs," Robin hypothesized, "Normal humans can function with only one kidney, but I don't think Wally would like being hooked up to a dialysis machine twelve times a day. Do you realize how often he has to go to the bathroom? He can't even sleep through the night because of it."

Artemis looked slightly uncomfortable, "I hope they save his kidney."

As if he acted on a cue, Dr. Sato stepped out of Wally's room and announced, "We saved his kidney."

Robin cracked a smile, but Roy jumped about a foot in the air and actually _whooped._ He grabbed Robin around the waist and spun him in the air, like he used to do when Robin was little (well, littl_er_), "Roy, put me down!"

Dr. Sato continued, "It's not functioning at 100%, but it is functioning better than a donor organ ever would in his body."

"Can we see him?" Artemis asked.

"Not until the test results come back."

"When will that—since when is there a Batgirl?"

"Wait, what?" Dick turned around and found Barbara Gordon, decked out fully in her Batgirl costume, stalking towards him, "Oh, this is not good."

"That's all you've got to say for yourself?" Babs cried, "Robin, if you ever scare me like that again—"she drew back her fist and landed a hard punch on his jaw. Robin, much to the surprise of Roy and Artemis, landed on the floor. He grit his teeth as he landed on the hand with the broken finger.

"Thanks a lot, Batgirl."

"Hey," Artemis said, "So if Robin is Dick Grayson, and Batman is Bruce Wayne, who're you?"

Batgirl's face turned nearly as red as her hair, "YOU TOLD YOUR TEAM? BATMAN IS GOING TO MURDER YOU!"

"Relax, Batgirl, he already knows. I had to say, for Wally's sake."

Batgirl sighed, "You're an idiot, Dickie. You'd better go and get that hand looked at before we go see Wally, or I'm calling in Agent A."

Roy chuckled, "Harsh. But he deserves it."

Robin pouted, "What did I ever do to you?"

#####

"I would have called the baby Jayson, if it had been a boy. Then we'd call him Don for short, so we would never have two Jays."

"What about for a girl?"

"Dawn."

"It's beautiful, Iris." Barry Allen relished the position he was in, stretched full out beside his wife. The emotions he was feeling, however, he could do without.

He would never, ever forgive Rudy West for what he had put his family through, nor would he forgive Mary anytime soon for her selfishness.

When Iris clutched tighter at his shirt, he knew that she had started crying again. He didn't blame her. He wanted to cry, too. Then go and resurrect Rudy and kill him again and cry some more.

There was a knock on the door, and Dr. Proll stuck his head in, "Mr. Flash? Kid Flash is ready for visitors. He's in and out of consciousness, so don't tire him out too much. Miss, you may go as well."

Iris was up before Dr. Proll had even finished talking. She moved so fast even the Flash had a hard time keeping up with her.

Barry and Iris found Roy, Robin, and Batgirl outside Wally's room, "Robin, Roy," Iris said, "Come with us." The two boys came without a fight. Iris looked so small, standing beside Barry. Her red hair was limp around her face, and she had obviously been crying.

#####

"Hey, Kiddo," Barry said, ruffling his nephew's hair, "Are you with us?"

He was so pale. Wally should never be that pale and gaunt.

Wally stirred at the voice and leaned into the touch, "Uncle Barry?" His voice was no more than a whisper. If Robin hadn't been a Bat, he never would have heard it, "Where…What's going on?"

"Shh, baby, tell us what you remember," Iris said softly.

"The chemistry lab at school blew up. But you know that, Aunt Iris, you were there. After that Dad picked me up, but then things get a bit blurry…I think he hit me again. I can't remember what I did this time. I woke up in this cage, and I tried to get out, but nothing was working. He gave me water every so often, but never any food. I don't really remember much about it, not until I heard you, Aunt Iris. What happened?"

"Your dad kidnapped you from school. He had you for three days before we could find you. We rescued you yesterday. Well, technically, it was Thea—"

"Thea?" Wally rasped a bit louder, "Thea's back?"

"Yes, she is. But Wally, I have to tell you this. Rudy is dead. Thea shot him through the heart with an arrow. And Wally, Mary passed away yesterday as well."

Wally didn't react immediately, but his breathing became shallow and labored, "How?"

"Wally—"

"How did she die?"

Barry sighed, "Rudy didn't kill her, if that's what you're asking. She killed herself."

Wally pushed himself further back into his pillow, "Can I talk to Rob and Speedy for a minute, Aunt Iris, Uncle Barry?"

Iris smiled, "We'll be back in a few minutes."

Wally's face was hard as Robin and Roy approached his bed, "Give it to me straight, guys. What else happened? Why is Aunt Iris in a hospital gown?"

Roy placed a hand on Wally's shoulder and roughly pushed him back to the bed, "Well, it's been a rough couple of days. For all of us."

Wally glared at him, "That's not an answer, Roy. My mother is dead. Alethea Queen has returned after five years, and saved all of our lives. My father took me captive, beat me to a bloody pulp and starved me for three days, and is now dead at Thea's hands. My uncle looks like someone sucker punched him, and my aunt has a look about her reminiscent of someone dying of cancer. What the hell else happened in the time I've been gone?"

Robin took a deep breath, "Wally, yesterday, before we found you, Uncle Barry accidentally tipped off Rudy when we figured out it was him who took you," Robin held up a hand when Wally tried to protest, "There was nothing he could do. He called Iris, and she was with Rudy and your mother. Rudy took them as well, and held them for nearly two hours until we found you all."

"What did he do to them?" Wally spat the question.

"Nothing above stressing them out, I can assure you," Roy said, "But the thing is, Iris was two months pregnant. That kind of stress, on top of you being MIA for the past couple of days, was not good for her. She lost the baby shortly after Rudy put her in the cell with you."

The door opened behind Roy and Dick. It was Dr. Lannister, her long brown hair in a tight, high ponytail, "I'm going to have to ask you boys to leave. Kid Flash needs to rest, and recover from the details you have no doubt revealed to him."

Robin and Roy tried to protest, but she shoved them out.

Wally's thoughts were racing at 100 miles an hour, and he was far from resting. Though physically, he was still really weak. His limbs still wouldn't move properly, and he was uncomfortably aware of the fact that his doctors had been forced to fit him with a catheter.

Still, he was here, and alive. His father wasn't. But, neither was his mother. For all her faults, Mary West was still his mother.

Wally finally knew what it felt like to be Roy. He might have said Dick, but even he couldn't comprehend that much pain.

Broken they were, all three of them.

#####

Alethea Kendra Queen was every bit the child of Robert and Moira Queen that her older brother was—more so, in fact. She had grown up wanting for nothing, the pampered princess in her family's sprawling Star City mansion. When her brother had disappeared, her status only increased, because Moira Queen only had one remaining child to spoil. She became the essence of everything most people detested about the rich, exactly as her brother Oliver had done before her.

That Thea was long gone. She died when Oliver returned from his over-extended vacation. It took Thea a long time to revive herself, to rebuild herself for good. While the newly returned Ollie renewed his playboy persona, she slowly let go of her party girl life. She got clean all on her own, with no external help, and took up the bow with help from the brother who had returned from the island. She hadn't been near the shot her brother was, but she had learned fast—lest she die young.

The Thea Queen that stood in the kitchen wasn't that much different than the girl who had left five years earlier. The Thea Queen that stood in the kitchen knew that her choice had been childish, but necessary.

Someone moved behind Thea, "Are you going to yell at me, Oliver, or can we talk civilly?" she turned around and did a double take. The one who had entered the kitchen was not Oliver, but Artemis.

Thea smiled softly at the girl. She almost didn't know what to say. _Artemis Crock. Daughter of Sportsmaster and Huntress, sister to Cheshire._ Dinah had told Thea of the fierceness Artemis held around her like a shield. Well, Thea could see it, clear as glass, for that was exactly what it looked like.

"Hello, Artemis," Thea said. Artemis' eyes held none of the fire they had in the battle the night before. Thea doubted she'd had anything to smile about for days, "What's the latest on Wally's condition?"

"The doctors say they can salvage the kidney that shut down, and he should have almost full use of it. They're letting in visitors now. Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry went to see him, along with Roy and Dick. I didn't want to be alone."

By the look on her face, Artemis was rather horrified at her revelation. It hadn't been her intension to let that little tidbit slip. Thea smiled again, "I don't blame you," she said, "Right now, I think I just want to curl up in a people puddle."

Artemis smiled slightly at that comment, "I'm not used to worrying about him so much," she whispered, "He can always get himself out of danger."

"Wally's like that. He never gets himself into a situation that he can't get out of—well, not anymore. There was a time when he always charged in without an escape plan, before he and Robin and Roy started training together. Flash—Barry—was much the same. They've grown so much since then; sometimes it's hard to remember that even with their powers, they're still only human like us."

Artemis seemed to steel herself for something, "Was Roy your replacement?"

The question came out of nowhere and knocked Thea off-guard, "No," she said when she recovered, "Did Oliver ever tell you how we met Roy?"

Artemis shook her head.

"It was spring, nearly twelve years ago. Dinah, Oliver, and I were just sitting down to dinner when all of a sudden, a blur to rival the Flash crashes straight through our back window and makes a beeline for the archery set above the mantle. Now, this is the bow that Oliver acquired on the island. You've seen it, haven't you? It took Oliver nearly two months just to be able to string it, let alone draw it. But this blur—who by then we realized was actually a child—vaults over the furniture and pulls down the bow and quiver. He strings the bow and gets off three really good shots—as it happens, he was being pursued by the police. He pinned four of them to the wall with three arrows before the fifth on managed to take him down. Ollie adopted him within the week," Thea grinned, "It definitely wasn't sunshine and daisies with a boy like Roy living in the house, but Oliver was well up for the challenge. The problem was that our Ollie's a bit clueless when it comes to dealing with other people—he's the best profiler I know, apart from Batman, and he can smooth-talk just about anyone, but raising a child? Especially one like Roy? Not exactly his forte. But, after a couple of years, I got accepted into the university in Gotham, and Oliver, with a little nudging from me and Dinah, decided Roy was ready to take over as Speedy. I'm guessing Ollie took you on without consulting Roy, and that's the reason for Roy's jealousy. He was so scared that he was replacing me when he first started that it took nearly a year for him to really settle in as Speedy."

"So, when I came along," Artemis interrupted, "He thought I was replacing him and that Ollie was betraying him."

"From my understanding of the situation, I believe so," Thea resumed what she had been doing before Artemis had entered the kitchen, gathering the ingredients for a loaf of bread. Thea was an average cook, but the bread recipe was her Great-great-grandma Doreen's, and her Grandma Megan had taught it to her. No one ever refused the Queen bread.

Megan had been the first archer in the family. She had married a man named Nicklaus Queen, thus Thea and Oliver's last name. She herself was a Hellofs, a volatile combination of Scottish, Austrian, and Dakota Native American ancestry. Nicklaus had brought Romanian and Irish to the pot, leaving their five children with an even more unpredictable mix of blood than their parents. Robert Queen was the middle child, and by far the most ruthless. His older siblings included the twins, the fiery Marynna and the beautiful Katianna. Younger than Robert were the wickedly smart Nathanial, and the baby of the family, Holly.

"Do you want to learn a secret?" Thea asked.

Artemis looked at her questioningly.

"Come here," Artemis crossed to Thea and looked over the ingredients Thea had spread across the counter, "I've had Barry Allen on his knees, begging, with this recipe. I taught it to Iris years ago, when I realized that she and Barry were in it for the long haul. It's something all the Queen women know, because it doesn't just bring Speedsters to their knees—it works on everyone. I think it's your turn. But before you touch the ingredients, you must promise one thing."

Artemis smirked. She could see where this was going.

Thea returned the grin, "You can never reveal this recipe to any man, not even if that man is your son or your brother or anyone like that. The only man to ever know this recipe was my great-grandfather, and no one in this generation is going to break that tradition. This is one of the family secrets I will guard with my life."

There was a slight commotion at the door, which involved Iris baring entrance to both Barry and Oliver. Artemis and Thea were both surprised to see a small smile gracing the woman's pale features.

"Should you really be out of bed, Iris?" Thea asked softly.

Even in a hospital gown, Iris West made a striking figure. She placed her hands on her hips and glared at Thea, "You don't want me to answer that question, Thea. Now, where's the milk?"

"Hmm?" Thea asked, her mind obviously not all on her friend.

"Milk. You can't make bread without milk, Thea."

"Right…"

Iris smirked, "Who's on little Miss Thea's mind now? Tommy Merlin? Seth Tobin? Or, do you think Mr. Roy Harper has gotten over his little crush?"

"Iris!" Thea cried.

"Wait, you and Roy?" Artemis shouted.

"NO!" Thea nearly shrieked, "He had a crush on me, that's all. Anyways, isn't he marrying your sister?"

"What's this about Jade?" A voice from above them startled the three women. Hanging upside-down from an open vent was none other than the Boy Wonder.


End file.
